Lyon County School District’s chronic absenteeism rate during the 2022-23 school year was reported at 38.1%, about 4% above the state average, according to Nevada’s accountability portal, nevadareportcard.nv.gov.
The U.S. Department of Education has released new data showing chronic absence levels have declined in the 2022-23 school year but continue to remain historically high overall.
Chronic absenteeism has dropped from its high of 30% of students from 2021-22 to 28% in 2022-23, according to a data analysis provided by national initiative Attendance Works and John Hopkins University’s Everyone Graduates Center.
The most recent figures available indicate reasonable efforts are helping to reduce a persistent issue affecting student achievement across the board for school districts wanting to improve engagement and in-person learning.
Cecilia Leong, Attendance Works’ vice president of programs, said involvement and community support at the local level is a driving factor to reduce student absences.
“A lot happens when schools focus on what they can control first, and a good place to start is putting together a team to address attendance,” she said. “That means not relying on the efforts of one person but many and making school a place kids want to be, making sure conditions are positive.”
Leong said in her observations with districts across the nation, communities are working to create environments where students feel safer, free from bullying, and achieve a sense of belonging in the classroom.
“The early intervention piece is using data and noticing that students become chronically absent,” she said. “It’s a systematic response when every student who hits that point is getting contact from someone who wants to know what’s happening with them and create that support. It varies so much by community what the barriers are.”
While the overall figures represent good news that there is an overall decline, the difficulty continues in most classrooms to engage students. The study from Attendance Works and Everyone Graduates Center showed 61% of schools had high or extreme levels of chronic absence in 2022-23, down from 65% in 2021-22. Elementary schools also were distressed: Approximately 3,550 schools that showed 30% or more chronic absence in 2017-18 grew to 19,828 in 2021-22 and still grew to 15,714 in 2022-23.
In Nevada, Leong said, transportation and health care are among the key barriers keeping students from the classroom. Some district administrations might examine certain bus routes and determine patterns of where students are missing the same buses and disruptions getting to school, for example, she said.
Other students might stay home due to illness because they didn’t receive a flu shot or need access to a nurse during their school day.
She commended Clark County for offering telehealth services on a larger scale to students, which keeps them from missing school as often.
“It gives them a chance to see the school nurse and get something addressed in 15 minutes and go back and not miss a day, and that’s critical,” she said. “Some of the studies show when a school nurse does the outreach, it increases their likelihood of coming back.”
“Talking to families tells you how complicated it is that students often miss for more than reason, and it could be everything from, ‘I don’t have a ride to school’ to ‘I’m not feeling terribly well,’ to ‘I don’t have clean clothes,’ ” she said.
She also praised the recent state pledge offered in the fall, for which Nevada’s Superintendent of Public Instruction Jhone Ebert committed to, to reduce chronic absenteeism rates during the next five years.
“It’s good to see the high tide (of absenteeism) receding,” Leong said. “I want to balance that happiness with just a note that we are nowhere near prepandemic levels. I think without intentional efforts, I don’t think we will see a return to prepandemic levels.”